Scouting the Hurricanes
Much of the circulating bowl speculation served up a spicy possible matchup for the Cowboys: a revival with Arkansas.
Eventually, that reunion of old rivals will get done, with the Razorbacks back on the regular season schedule in 2024, but not until then.
Still, Sunday’s announcement of OSU to the Cheese-It Bowl provided plenty of tasty appeal, and not just because of the snack crackers – which are excellent, of course – but because of the foe: the Miami Hurricanes.
That’s right, The U.
These aren’t the same Canes that once wreaked havoc on college football, both on the field and off. Recently, they’ve scuffled mightily in fact.
But Miami may have turned the corner back to respectability this season, going 8-2 through the regular season. The losses, however, were ugly, 42017 to Clemson and 62-26 to North Carolina.
Still, the Canes did plenty of good, too.
Here’s a quick look at the Cowboys’ opponent:
Miami Hurricanes
Coach: Manny Diaz (14-9)
2020 Record: 8-2, 7-2 in the ACC.
Best win: No. 23 North Carolina State, 44-41. In a back-and-forth slugfest, Miami rallied from a 10-point fourth quarter deficit to win on the road, getting the go-ahead score on a 54-yard touchdown pass from quarterback D’Eriq King to wideout Mike Harley with 2:43 to play.
Worst loss: No. 13 North Carolina, 62-26. The Canes also lost to No. 2 Clemson 42-17, but the loss to the Tar Heels, in their last time out, was a full on rout, with UNC leading 34-3 at one point in the first half. The Heels outgained Miami 778-314.
Best player: The U. has pushed King for the Heisman Trophy, but he’s well off the radar of the frontrunners. Still, the Houston transfer has put together an outstanding season, leading the Canes in rushing (520 yards) and passing (2,573 yards, 22 touchdowns, 5 interceptions). The dual-threat QB has returned to elite form following a 2019 season in which Miami struggled on offense. There’s been some question about King’s future, as he could return for another season in 2021, or he could conceivably opt out of the bowl game to prepare for the NFL Draft.
End Run: Miami will be without its best pass rusher, Jaelen Phillips, who has opted out to prepare for the NFL Draft. At 6-foot-5 and 266 pounds, Phillips is dynamic off the edge. He led the Canes with 8.0 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss and ranked fourth on the team with 45 tackles.
“Obviously, a guy like Jaelen is not going to be easy to replace,” Diaz said.
Cowboy Connections: Two former OSU coaches have succeeded in leading the Hurricanes: Jimmy Johnson and Larry Coker. Johnson was the Cowboys’ coach from 1979-83 before leaving the Dade County, leading Miami to the 1987 national title. Coker served as OSU’s offensive coordinator from 1983-89 and after stints as an assistant at Oklahoma, Ohio State and Miami, he took over as the Canes head coach in 2001 and immediately won a national crown.
Fame and Fortune: Miami claims a long list of famous alumni. Actors Sylvester Stallone, Ray Liotta, Charles Grodin and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson stand among entertainers, along with Gloria Estefan, Grace Slick and Enrique Iglesias, among others. And there’s a long list of elite athletes who have come from Miami, including Michael Irvin, Vinny Testaverde, Bernie Kosar, Ed Reed, Frank Gore, Sean Taylor, Amar’e Stoudemire, Jonathan Vilma, Warren Sapp, Rick Barry, Ryan Braun, Greg Louganis and more.